The Search (Almost Perfect part 1)

Gaige stood in her garage, hands on the desk, her brown hair loose and wild. She continued to stare at the scematics of a device Kaytlyn helped design, unable to understand their meaning. She couldn't concentrate, she couldn't think straight for two seconds without worrying about what her mother had unleashed on earth. She knew there were worse things, Alexai was still on the loose too, but hopefully he was nowhere near Vyn or her mothers army, or things would get very bad.

They already had the serion to worry about, the first battle of many to come taking place as she stood there. She couldn't ask for help from Alexander, not that she'd want to go to the coalition for help. and Kaytlyn was busy protecting her progeny. She also hadn't spoken to her father since she found out. They'd had one big argument, and after that she hadn't said a word to him, just pretended he wasn't there.

She'd almost forgiven him after she found out about Liv's father, but couldn't bring herself to say the words. Ok so maybe it wasn't all his fault but she just couldn't help being angry about it. She needed to do something, but she just couldn't concentrate. Gaige Sneered and smashed the table with her fist, cracking the wood and bursting her knuckles. She cursed, loudly. "Stupid hand!" She crossed the room, dripping blood on the floor, and sat down to sulk.

Laura Fisher was anxious. Emotions were running high on all fronts these days. One of her best friends and adopted sister, Liv Firestorm, had really been put through the wringer. She had recently found her mother, Clara, who had been presumed dead since just after she was born. But just when it looked like Liv would enjoy a normal family existence - well, as normal as you can get given that she and her father and brother were Arrancar, and her mother a Vizard - she then lost her father to a new menace. Arngrim had been killed by a Hollow who had assumed his throne. Clara was deeply affected by this, as expected. Liv, on the other hand, almost shut down. Laura had tried to talk to her almost immediately after Liv had returned from Hueco Mundo, but Liv simply deflected the attention and left. Laura and Gaige had been about to follow when Clara stopped them. "It's okay. I know how much she means to you, and believe me she loves you two just as much. But she needs to be alone for now. She has to learn to forgive herself, and move on. Don't worry. I will watch over, as I always will. Thank you, for being there for her and offering her friendship. I will always treasure you two girls. But I must also go. Look after yourselves." The pretty Vizard then put her mask on and left.

Laura arrived back to the ranch, concerned. They had been looking for Gaige's escaped sister, Vyn, for sometime now, ever since she had escaped from Hanna Ashe's lab. Gaige had hacked the Coalition's TERC sensor net, using it to search for Vyn as well as to co-ordinate her agents in the field. Tadatomo had offered to help, using resources from the Coalition. In the meantime, Gaige was also working with Kaytlyn Kal'Dior, an alien who had come from another world to warn of an impending invasion by a sadistic robot race that Kaytlyn's own people had created. An invasion that was happening right now. Word had by now spread about the battle in New York. Kaytlyn had elected to stay there with Serena, her creation and friend, to help repel them. But there was also the matter of Alexei Romanov, a powerful mage that had been resurrected and had fought off several of the Coalition's best, Tadatomo included, and escaped. All-in-all, it was a tumultuous time.

Entering the garage, Laura saw Gaige sulking, her hand bloodied, and a clear break in the wood of a nearby counter-top. Laura offered a warm smile."Workbench offend you again?" She looked at the schematics on the table. They detailed a device which would send a target into the world where Kaytlyn and the Serion come from. On the other side was a specially reinforced room to contain Vyn. The unique properties of the Serion realm meant that all reiatsu is dissolved upon entering. It was their hope that this could be used to stop Vyn, without killing her. Kaytlyn had supplied help for the schematics, but the Serion attack on New York had pulled her away before they could begin building. "Still having trouble with the blueprints?"

Gaige shook her head. "No. My hand did. Turns out I forgot its not made of metal. Yet." She sighed and shook her head. It wasn't the scematics. She could build anything. She'd built plasma weapons that impressed a woman who'd built her own best friend... "Its not that I can't understand it. I can't focus, Laura. I miss Liv. We're under attack by sentient killing machines, and the strongest Arrancar in existance just got bumped off and replaced by something far far worse. We're surrounded by enemies, we're running out of time!"

She stood up, clenching her fists. "It doesn't matter if I build this thing, because I'm not strong enough to force Vyn into it. She's on par with Kai or Grainne. When we go after her, It'll be you and someone else risking their lives to get her into this portal, just like it was Tadatomo and you who risked your lives against my mother. I'm weak, I'm not getting any stronger and i can't build something stronger than the overdrive suit. I can barely last using that as it is. For the first time in my life, I feel useless!" She swung and hit the wall with her left hand this time, cracking a hole into the brick. Then she started to cough, blood spilling over her lips and down her chin.

Suddenly fatigued she sat down and put her face in her hands, and started to cry out of frustration. "She ruined my life, she ruined the life of a girl who didn't even know she existed. I want to help her Laura, but I don't know if i can even help myself anymore. I might be dead before I get the device working..."

Laura watched as Gaige began to speak. The diminutive genius expressed frustration, not only at the current situation, but at herself as well. As Gaige spoke, her pent up anger and frustration threatened to boil over until, finally, it did. Gaige slammed her metal fist against the wall, knocking a brick or two loose. She then suffered the consequences of her exertion, coughing up some blood and experiencing a sudden wave of fatigue. The girl sat down, and began to weep, despair washing over her. Laura sat down beside her and put an arm around the fragile girl.

"I know. I miss her too. But you heard her mom. She will be back when she's ready. We just need to make sure she has something to come back to. And we will. Like we always do. We'll find a way to make it work. The odds mean nothing to us and our friendship. You are only weak if you are alone and you stop believing. You are not alone, and I'm not going to let you stop believing. I need you. The world needs you. There are other ways to be useful." Laura turned Gaige's face until they looked eye-to-eye. "You can help her. And I believe you will live to torment me for far longer than you think. Just you wait and see." Laura leaned forward and kissed Gaige on the forehead, then a wry smile formed on her face. "Now, the only danger here is you drowning in this sappy, corny mess of a speech. But you get the idea. We will hold the line."

An energy signature approaching quickly broke Laura from her sermon. "Tadatomo's back." Laura got to her feet as a red-haired young man in a trench-coat entered the room. He bowed politely before Laura enveloped him in a warm hug. "Hi there. Please tell me you found something. I don't think I got any more sappy speeches in me." Laura released the hug. Tadatomo looked confused for a moment, but glanced at Gaige and understood. "I see. In that case, I have some good news at least. I pulled something when I was going through a list of contacts I had from my time in the now-defunct Regno Nero organisation. My source has correlated a spate of sightings of beings that match the description of Hanna's "super-soldiers". They seem to originate from a remote location in the north of Sweden. This is our best lead. In light of recent events, we are also short on time."

Gaige let Laura hug her and listened to what she had to say. She knew it probably wasn't true, but it made her feel somewhat better. She wiped the tears from her face, and clenched her fist. "Maybe. If Kaytlyn and the others prevail, she might be able to help me get better. I know at the very least her machines can undo the damage." It also wasn't enough, since her last treatment with Kaytlyn was under a week ago, and things were already getting bad again. It would eventually make no difference.

She would have told Laura, but at that moment Tadatomo showed up. She grinned at him as Laura practically tackled him across the room with a hug. He was business as always though, and went straight into his reason for coming. "You found her? Thats fantastic. I'm glad I didn't explode your heart by mistake when we fought.... Not that there was a danger of that...." Gaige looked at the schematics.

"I still dont want to... put you in danger.. Vyn is powerful. I know I told the coalition I destroyed all the research on the perfect soldiers, but I lied. I copied it all straight into here." She tapped the side of her head. "I've studied it, allot. The things My mother did to her.... Even if we get her to Valerion, she's got some serious gene modifications. I'm hoping wiping away the massive amounts of energy she has will allow her to come back to herself, but there's still a chance she wont... She might be broken mentally. I don't know about you two, but I don't know anyone who can fix something like that... "

She knew the truth of that. If Vyn's mind was broken, and considering what Hanna had put her through, chances were slim they could help her. Gaige knew her mother had a way of controlling Vyn, but she'd never said how. "There's also the problem of the other perfects. My mother kept records, and she had created over 100 of them. 121 by her last count. About 15 were elites, the rest as strong as me but still.... Now, most of these were moved to a seperate facility, and kept in cryosleep. Did you contact say anything about numbers? have any been released?" She asked.

Tadatomo smiled slightly at Gaige's welcome. He rubbed his chest slightly in a mock sign of relief."I am also glad that didn't happen, believe me." Tadatomo and Laura accompanied Gaige as she returned to the schematics on the damaged desk. She expressed reservations about the couple's involvement in her endeavour. The diminutive genius did not want to risk the safety of her friends. Laura simply grinned. "Well see, unfortunately for you, that's not your decision to make. We'll be with you the whole way." She squeezed Tadatomo's hand. "Right?" Tadatomo looked to Laura and smiled. "Did you even need to ask?" He fixed his gaze once again on Gaige and bowed. "We will see this through to the end. But for now, you two should work on the device. I will travel to Sweden and conduct reconnaissance. I am meeting a contact there near the site. He has been watching for any changes in activity. I will see you both soon." Laura grabbed him before he could leave and planted a kiss on his cheek. She smiled warmly at him."Don't be late."

Ten hours later

Laura stood proud, looking at their work. She was sore, tired, and covered in cuts, but she had never felt better. The device was complete, albeit untested, and she looked fondly on it. "Well, this will either go down in history as either a stunning success or catastrophic failure. What do you think?" She circled the device, looking for any flaws or weaknesses in the design. However, Kayltyn Kal'Dior was nothing if not thorough and detailed in her work. Every conceivable complication had been addressed in the schematics, so Laura was fairly confident in the structural integrity of the machine.

A power surge approaching the lab signalled the return of Tadatomo, and the red-haired man entered the room, satchel at his hip. Laura enveloped him in a hug, as was customary. He smiled and returned the hug. "Hi there. I see you have had some success." He let go and followed her over to the machine. He nodded in approval. "Impressive work, as always. Is it fully functional?" Laura nodded. "System checks completed just a while ago. All systems are operating within expected parameters. However, there is no way to know if it works until we try it." Tadatomo nodded. "Well then, it seems we are going where no one has gone before." (OOC: )

The red-haired man walked over to an empty desk and unpacked his satchel. Inside was a map of an area, with a small area highlighted. "This is where the source of the unusual activity is." Laura looked at it, confused. "Hmm... I was expecting something... bigger." Tadatomo explained. "That's because it is. Thermal scans show a large facility underground. Miss Ashe has been busy."

Gaige wiped her brow and sighed. Well that had been something. She had needed all the help she could get from Laura with that machine, and was proud at how well her friend had done. She was no where near as technologically savvy as Gaige was, but she was a damn sight better than anyone Gaige knew, barring Kaytlyn of course.

"Alright all we need to do now is set the coordinates to the bunker Kaytlyn built in Asenda prime for us, and test it. Who wants to go visit a different planet?" She asked Laura. However it seemed at that moment Tadatomo returned with news of his trip to Sweden. Gaige listened to what he had to say, nodding. "My mother never mentioned the site she stored the perfect humans in in her research notes. This must be it then. Makes sense that its in sweden, not to far from the first lab, she only moved because the coalition got to close to her by mistake..."

It was curious that the perfect humans were content to hide there. It was possible Vyn was stopping them, or maybe they couldn't leave? Maybe Vyn didn't know how to release them all from cryo stasis. "According to mothers notes, the perfect humans display serious agression. Half of sweeden should be gone by now, if Vyn's released everyone in that facility from cryosleep. If she hasn't that gives us an opportunity to wipe them all out before they get out... The facility has a self destruct function no doubt.. What do you two think?" She asked.

Gaige looked at the machine one more time. Once it was anchored, and activated, it would create a one way portal to the set coordinates. It would also create a gravity well around it, sucking anything in 10ft of the machine towards the portal. It should be strong enough to pull Vyn in once they got her close enough. Gaige pressed a button on it that caused it to shrink down into a one foot rod, using the same technology to store it as her combat suits used.

"Lets test this outside. I dont want to blow up my workshop.... Again."

Laura nodded at Gaige's musings. "It seems finally we have some good fortune. We might have an opportunity to get in before any real damage is done." Tadatomo was not convinced, however. "It is possible that a trap has been set. We will have to be careful. We also have time constraints from another front. I received word from New York. They are being hit hard, and they have lost their auto-turret system." Laura's eyes widened with fear. "That's not good. What about Kaytlyn and Serena?" Tadatomo shook his head. "The message didn't say. But I believe in them. They will hold. They have to."

Gaige packed up their invention and suggested that they move outside, to preserve the workshop. So outside they went. Gaige re-deployed the machine. Laura tilted her head at it. "What should we call it? We need something that rolls off the tongue easier than Gravity-Assisted Dimensional Capture Device. How about the Pitfall Device?" Tadatomo shook his head. "Not sure. In any case, I will volunteer for the test." The crimson-haired man stepped forward, not quite knowing what would happen.

"From the signals we were reading with the Terc, its not going great alright." Gaige set up the machine, and it anchored itself to the ground. An energy field activated around it, protecting it from damage. Hopefully it was enough protection, and Vyn didn't just turn it to scrap metal as soon as it was deployed. Tadatomo Volunteered to go through. "Not so fast there hotshot. I'll test it. If it backfires, I don't want you dying because of it." Gaige pulled out a device and tossed it to Laura. "Kaytlyn loaned me this. Its a normal portal device to asenda prime. Its locked to her bunker so you wont end up anywhere else. I'll meet you both on the other side, hopefully." She said.

Gaige jumped into the air above the machine. 10ft. That was the range of the gravity well. "Just to be warned guys, you will be drained of all spiritual energy when you get there. Its going to feel weird the first time." Gaige moved closer. She didn't mention that she had Kaytlyn design this portal differently. It would rip out all of Gaige's energy at once, which was going to hurt allot. Even dissipating normally in Asenda prime, Vyn's energy might be enough to do allot of damage before she ran out of it. They couldn't take any chances.

She took another step towards the portal, and it started to tug at her, even sapping her spiritual pressure from that distance. Gaige took a deep breath, and took another step into the field. As soon as she got within ten feet, the thing started to pull on her, hard. She tried fighting it, but she was pulled into it faster than she could resist. With a grunt, she deployed her overdrive power suit and tried to escape the pitfall device with all of her power, she moved an inch away from it, before the pull got too strong and she was ripped backwards into the portal with a scream. She lost conciousness between then and when the agony set in.

Tadatomo had offered to test, but Gaige declined announcing her intention to go herself. Tadatomo knew he wasn't going to be able to deter her, so he simply nodded and stepped back. Laura caught the device, studying it intently for a moment before nodding. "Good luck." Tadatomo stepped out of the range of the device before bowing. Gaige warned them about the energy draining property of Kaytlyn's world. "Understood. See you there." Gaige activated the device, the gravity well noticeable even from where Laura and Tadatomo were standing. Gaige approached it tentatively, before inhaling deeply and plunging into the abyss. There was a scream and then she was gone. The machine shut off, having captured its target. Laura immediately activated Kaytlyn's portal device. The portal shimmered into life and waited for them. With a simple glance to each other, the couple set forth together.

The ride was quick and efficient, depositing the two people into Kaytlyn's lab. They took a moment to take in their surroundings, noting the slight sense of nausea that indicated their power was being drained, before their eyes locked onto the large transparent cube in the corner of the room. Gaige lay inside, unconscious. "Gaige!" They ran over to the cube and looked for an unlocking mechanism of some sort. Then suddenly, a monitor turned on beside the cube. Kaytlyn's face appeared on the monitor, expressionless. "Greetings Tadatomo. I took the liberty of leaving this message for you upon your arrival in my lab. I assume Gaige has tested the machine on herself, And she is inside the containment chamber. As it is highly unlikely she remained conscious, there is a hypospray for you to use to revive her and stop some of the side effects of what happened to her." A drawer popped open beneath the console, revealing a small silver tube with a nozzle at one end. Tadatomo picked it up. The message continued. "Good. Now, the release command sequence has already been input, you just need to confirm. Press the yellow button on the console below." Tadatomo looked at Laura, who returned his confused look. He pressed the control as asked, and the cube faded away. A few beeps sounded, and the message resumed. "Now, to apply the hypospray, press the nozzle firmly to Gaige's carotid artery, and press the control. She will regain full consciousness in approximately 5-7 seconds. A holographic message will play upon the computer recognising the voice of Gaige. Farewell." The screen returned to it's previous display.

Tadatomo did as the message suggested. The device hissed as it delivered its payload straight into Gaige's blood. Tadatomo looked closely at the device. "Fascinating. It administers agents directly into the blood, without marking or puncturing the skin. Impressive technology." He passed it to Laura, who stared at it intently. "That's unbelievable. Hey, she's waking up." As soon as Gaige spoke, another series of beeps sounded. A flat, emotionless voice spoke from the walls. "Voice-recognition protocols active. Recognise, Gaige Ashe. Commencing message playback." A beam of light rose from the ground in the centre of the lab. The light resolved into a replica of Kaytlyn. The holo-Kaytlyn stepped forward and began speaking, eyes fixed at a point directly in front of it. "If this message is playing, then the procedure has been a success. Welcome back Gaige. Before you leave again, I must inform you of something, though you might have already determined already of what I speak. After studying in detail my scans of your body from your first visit here, I was able to fully understand your condition, as well as the cause. I assumed you would be the one to test the capture device, so I modified its reiatsu-drain parameters. The drain was intense enough, to remove all reiatsu from you body, at a faster than normal pace. As a result, you no longer suffer from reiatsu sickness. This is my gift to you, for all of your help. Farewell, Gaige Ashe. Good fortune." The hologram disappeared, leaving them in silence.

Everything came back to Gaige with a rush and blur. Her eyes snapped open and she gasped for breath as Tadatomo Injected the hypospray into Gaige. She stumbled for words as she tried to push herself into a sitting position. "Well I lived." She said, as she sat in the middle of the workshop floor. As soon as she spoke, Kaytlyn's computer came to life and started to speak.

Gaige listened to the message and nodded. "I won't say I didn't have my suspicions. There was something off about the calculations alright." Gaige looked at Laura. "Guess you were right, hey? I'm cured. Well, atleast I'm probably cured. I might still be sensitive to other peoples energy. That leaves a few questions...." Gaige said standing up.

"We need to go back to earth. I have a feeling that trip changed more than Kaytlyn expected. I won't complain, I never really needed spiritual energy.." She said. Gaige nodded to Laura to engage the portal. Meanwhile she locked the containment unit. "Next time we come back, my sister will be with us." She said, stepping into the open portal. With a whoosh, they were returned to Gaige's front garden.

Gaige walked towards the house, waiting for the feeling of her spiritual energy to return. It didn't take long to figure out it wasn't coming back. "Well Tadatomo, it's just as well I went and you didn't. That machine removed all of my spiritual energy, and its not coming back. Not that i'm complaining. Good riddance." She said. She didn't intend on modifying it either. Vyn's energy was what twisted her more than likely. Removing it for good would be for the best.

Laura was almost in tears. Tears of joy. "You're... cured? That's wonderful!" Tadatomo nodded with a warm smile. "Indeed. Our luck appears to be on the upturn. The device works, and you have been cured. The odds are now exponentially better." They watched as Gaige resealed the containment unit and then entered the portal after her, heading back to Earth. The lab disappeared in a swirl as the vortex of the portal enveloped them. Then, they were back outside Gaige's workshop.

The first thing Tadatomo and Laura noticed was that they could no longer sense Gaige. She was giving off zero spiritual energy. Gaige addressed this and Tadatomo nodded. "Indeed. I probably would not endured it as well as you have." Then, Gaige's father appeared from the house. He had a concerned look on his face. "I heard a ruckus. What is going on?"

"Your tough, you'd have been fine. I mean you'd have no powers, but what can powers do that robotics can't, right Laura?" Gaige grinned. Then her father appeared. Gaige frowned at him as she hit the switch to store the pitfall device. "Nothing. I'm cured. We'll be leaving soon to fix a mess." She said coldly and stalked past her father. She needed to run a few tests. She didn't have time for this.

Gaige stormed into her workshop and grabbed a few things. She grabbed a box of tools and the device she used to messure her energy, slamming it into the box. Then she stalked back outside. "Its time to go to sweeden. We can make a plan on the way." Gaige said. "where did you land your plane Tadatomo?" She said as she walked over to the car and threw the toolbox into the boot.

Gaige's dad gaped at Gaige. "You're... cured? How? When? Who? I have so many questions!" But Gaige was having none of it, and stalked past her father with purpose. Laura smiled awkwardly. "It's kind of a long story sir." Gaige returned a few moments later with her bag and toolbox in tow. She walked over to the car and chucked her stuff in the trunk. She inferred it was time to go. Tadatomo bowed to Mr. Ashe and got into the driver's seat. "Not far. I'll take us there." Laura waved as she got into the car. "Shotgun! Bye Mr. Ashe!" As the car moved away, Kevin Ashe sighed loudly. "I'm getting too old for this." He walked back inside.

Soon after, the car pulled into an abandoned airfield. A sleek black jet was waiting, looking out of place amongst all of the debris and neglected masonry around it. They boarded and Tadatomo climbed into the pilot's chair. "All systems are online. Preparations for take-off complete." The jet roared into life and was soon sky-bound. Tadatomo headed back into the main cabin of the jet where Laura and Gaige were sitting. "We are at top speed. E.T.A. in Sweden is 3 hours." Laura yawned and stretched her legs out.

Gaige got onto the plane and threw her stuff to one side. She pulled out a holographic projector and set it on a table between them and connected her artemis to it She brought up a map of the area around the facility while she scanned through old information left by her mother. "So this is the area. There are atleast two targets here, Vyn and another perfect human who escaped the facility with her. It makes sense that she joined up with Vyn, since mother programmed them to seek who ever held control of the perfect humans if she died. I'm pretty sure Vyn figured that out and is the sole controller of the perfect humans now, since none were seen when Alexai was ressurected." She said. Gaige place two markers inside the facility to signify the two known threats.

She placed another four markers around the site. "This is the scanner network. Remember what we used before attacking the last facility? We'll use that again. Laura you know how they work so you can show tadatomo and we'll get it done quickly. Based on what the scans pick up, we may need to call in help. I'd rather not though." She said."Either of you anything to add to that?"

Tadatomo and Laura sat at a large display table as Gaige unloaded her stuff and set-up a holographic display on it. The image depicted a map of the facility that was their target, as well as the surrounding area. Gaige highlighted the targets, as well as the locations of the sensor nodes that they would need to place. Laura had done this before with Liv for their previous mission. They listened as Gaige explained the theory. Tadatomo exhaled deeply when Gaige mentioned Alexei's name. The battle against Alexei Romanov had not gone well. The mage outmatched all present, only retreating when Kai arrived. They had not heard from him since then, but at the back of his mind, Tadatomo knew he was out there somewhere.

Gaige finished her briefing, asking if they had any questions. The two red-heads shook their heads. Tadatomo produced his handguns, Artemis and Apollo, and began to clean them out. "When we land, my contact will meet us. He has procured a place for us to use as a base of operations. We can rest there and plan our approach once the sensor net is in place." Laura yawned, then unfolded Crescent Rose. She too began to clean her faithful sniper-scythe. "This is going to be interesting, at least."